The Egyptian Shaabi (folk/popular) singer Sha'ban Abd El Reheem released one of his political Shaabi or 'pop' songs criticizing Bush, saying: "Before he leaves Bush intends to leave a mess, since the beginning he's brought disasters, born in a battle, praying is not enough against you or your father, it was a black day when you were nominated."

From there, the intersecting Bab al-Wazir street leads straight to the massive 10th century Bab Zuweila gate, past the Bayt al-Razzaz palace refurbished by the American Research Center in Egypt, the mosque and madrasah of Umm al-Sultan Sha'ban and the minaret of Zawiyyat al-Hunud - and beyond, to where the redesigned Islamic Art Museum has just opened to rave reviews.

"Egypt's hesitancy to open the crossing is due to the crisis between Hamas and Cairo following the death of Egyptian soldier Ahmad Sha'ban," one source told Ma'an, referring to protest at the border last month.

Ambassador in Damascus: Syrian officials, including Assad's advisor Buthaina Sha'ban, expressed a hope that an improvement in the relations with the U.S. would lead to the appointment of a U.S. ambassador in Damascus.

"It's ridiculous how when 10 people in Egypt had bird flu the whole country was agitated and Sha'bola [popular singer Sha'ban Abdel Rahim] was singing about it," says Dr. Hassan Azzazy, chair of the chemistry department at the American University in Cairo.

A local press freedom group, The Journalistic Freedoms Observatory, named the dead as chairman and general manager Abdul-Rahim Nasrallah al-Shimari and his bodyguard, Ali Jabber; deputy general manager Noufel al-Shimari; presenters Thaker al-Shouwili and Ahmad Sha'ban; administrative manager Sami Nasrallah al-Shimari; video mixer Hussein Ali; and three guards identified only by their first names: Maher, Ahmad and Hassan.